Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Members, thank you for your invitation to update the committee on what our government is doing to support Canada's veteran community.
I'd like to begin by acknowledging the tragic deaths last week of four military officer cadets at the Royal Military College in Kingston. On behalf of the government, I extend my heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the four young adults and to the entire RMC community.
It's always a pleasure to appear before you, and I want to thank you for your recent work on veterans monuments, service dogs and other important issues for Canadian veterans and their families.
Mr. Chair, along with some colleagues on this committee, I was honoured over the past few weeks to pay my respects at the war cemeteries and monuments in France, Belgium and the Netherlands. From Vimy to Passchendaele to Holten, I was reminded of the enormous sacrifice that Canadians have made in the service of peace around the world. Seeing the Canadian flag flying overseas is a touching reminder that the people of Europe have not forgotten the Canadians who went to fight in the First and Second World Wars.
Along with my colleagues here, we met with the Juno Beach Centre, the local mayor and people from the community to discuss the proposed condo development in the area of the Juno Beach Centre. I also met with my French counterpart to discuss our concerns about this proposed construction. We agreed on the importance to honour the sacrifice of Canadian soldiers who landed at Juno Beach and to never forget the 359 Canadians who fell on the beach on June 6, 1944. We resolved to work together to find a solution to the dispute, making sure that Juno Beach Centre is not negatively impacted, and to guarantee that we protect this historic site for Canada and France.
As you may have heard, the Duke of Sussex announced at the closing ceremonies that Vancouver and Whistler will host the 2025 Invictus games, which is a big deal for Canada. Like all Canadians, I look forward to watching our teams compete on home soil in three years' time.
In terms of service delivery to Canada's veterans, I think it's important to restate that the Government of Canada is fully committed to the health and well-being of veterans and their families. This includes making sure that they're getting answers as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Since February when I was last here, the government confirmed that it will provide nearly $140 million to extend more than 350 staff to work on the backlog. This is great news for the veterans. It will allow us to keep investing in our employees so that we can keep getting decisions out to veterans as quickly as possible.
As of April 29, there were 10,937 applications that were over the standard time. That's more than a 50% decline from the high of over 23,000 when we began investing in the backlog. That is good progress, but we know there's still more work to do, and we are committed to doing it.
As a government we're committed to addressing the backlog and turnaround times. The $5.5 billion of funding in this year's main estimates and an additional commitment made through the 2022 budget will help us meet this goal.
The main estimates reflect nearly $2 billion more in annual spending for Veterans Affairs Canada than when we formed the government in 2015. This is nearly $2 billion more going into the pockets of veterans and, while there is more work to do, that is something we can be proud of.
Let me turn to another issue that is very important to our government. That is veteran homelessness. Simply put, one homeless veteran is too many.
Budget 2022 announced an additional $62.2 million to launch a new veteran homelessness program. This program will provide services and rent supplements to veterans experiencing homelessness and help them get back on their feet. Our programs, like the veterans emergency fund and veteran and family well-being fund, are also key supports to homeless and at-risk veterans.